Farm Worker Group Wants To Start Park

DELEON SPRINGS — A farm workers' rights group that is leading the drive for a health department clinic in northwest Volusia County also is trying to get support for a county park in the area.

No park exists in west Volusia north of a little league field in DeLeon Springs, about 20 miles south of the county line. Members of the Leatherleaf Community Relations Council Inc., a coalition of farm workers' rights advocates, say recreational space is needed for Pierson and Seville area residents.

A park also may provide a gathering place and break down cultural barriers between farmers, most of whom are white, and their workers, most of whom are Hispanics, coalition members say.

''We can't keep bringing in workers and not doing anything else. We have to make them feel welcome,'' said Richard Hawley, a DeLeon Springs automobile dealer and president of the group. ''We have to have a community.''

Three tracts of publicly owned land in the area may be turned into parks, but there are problems with the locations, Hawley said. The largest tract, five acres off Blackburn Road south of Pierson, was siezed by the county several years ago for unpaid taxes and is undeveloped.

The county doesn't own any of the land surrounding the five acres and there is no public access to it. Hawley said it may be possible for the Leatherleaf council to obtain access to the land in return for the county developing a park.

The school board owns two acres that used to be the site of Seville Elementary School off Raulerson Road. That land could be turned into a playground but is too small for any other purpose, Hawley said.

A third publicly owned tract off County Road 3 south of Pierson is used by the county to stockpile sand and gravel for road projects. It probably would cost too much to convert that two-acre site into a playground, Hawley said.

Wes Crile, county parks and recreation director, said if the Leatherleaf council wants to establish a park, it should look for a state grant. Most parks in the county began with state money, he said.

Crile and county councilman Big John offered hope, but no promises of financial aid, to the coalition members during a meeting Monday night in DeLeon Springs.

''You don't wish for something and then Volusia County gives it to you. You need to do a lot of legwork,'' John told coalition members. ''A park in Seville and Pierson isn't high on the priority list now.''

Coalition members say they heard similar words of caution when the movement for a health department clinic began several months ago.

Then, the coalition convinced health department administrators that thousands of poverty-stricken northwest Volusia residents, most of them farm workers, are isolated from any medical care. Health department administrators say they hope to open a clinic in Pierson by July.